Forest Carbon for the Private Landowner: Basics of Carbon Offsets, Markets, and Trading

Topics in this presentation:

Forest Conversion will affect National Sequestration Potential and Targets

Mitigation: Forest Management Options

Offsets and Credits

Voluntary vs. Compliance Markets

Why use (forestry) offsets

Global GHG Abatement Cost Curve v2.1

Offsets can substitute for emissions reductions in Capped Sectors

Baselines and Additionality

Circular Definitions?

Permanence

Leakage

Measuring, Monitoring and Verification

Cost Considerations for Landowners

Sarah Hines is an Ecosystem Services Specialist with Northeastern Area State & Private Forestry and the Northern Research Station branches of the USDA Forest Service. Before joining the Forest Service, Sarah worked in Ford Motor Company's Sustainable Business Strategies Office, on Base-of-the-Pyramid initiatives with SC Johnson in Ghana, and on sustainable ranching and farming issues with the Rural Landscape Institute in Bozeman, Montana. Sarah earned an A.B. in biological anthropology from Harvard University and an MBA and MS (in environmental policy) from the University of Michigan. In her current position, she has focused on issues related to climate change mitigation and adaptation, the financial viability of private forestland ownership, and the potential for private landowners to engage in emerging carbon and other ecosystem service markets as a mechanism to help prevent forest conversion to other land uses.